Roving Review: Before It's Gone, Cold Spring

COLD SPRING – Before It's Gone is a quaint little coffee shop in Cold Spring. Easy to miss, as it is in the Maurin Mansion off Main Street and could be mistaken as just a house, it's a very pleasant spot for breakfast and lunch. With the homey decor, it almost feels as if you're visiting a person's home.

Before It's Gone provides a subdued, relaxing experience in comparison to the typical rush that breakfast and lunch sometimes bring. The restaurant also sources its produce locally as much as possible, which may affect the availability of some menu offerings.

The menu primarily offered sandwiches, panini and salads, with three to four options in each category. Prices varied slightly but stayed below $10, and a chalkboard in the dining area showed some dessert options.

The business portrays itself as a coffee shop and mentions on its website that it sources its whole beans from a Litchfield-based artisan roaster. One of our reviewers is a coffee aficionado and felt that the coffee is fairly decent.

Its coffee is better than many — good whole beans do wonders — but our reviewer was surprised it was brewed in advance and kept in a large thermos. Our reviewer was anticipating a menu of different beans and a made-to-order brew instead.

The food came quickly. One of our reviewers ordered the 418 whole sandwich, which combined cracked pepper turkey breast, bacon and greens with mayo on multigrain bread. The sandwich came with chips. The sandwich tasted light but flavorful, though the taste and flavor of pepper was weak.

Our second reviewer ordered a panini called the Best Ever that came with chips as well. Made with cracked pepper turkey breast and pepper jack cheese, our reviewer felt the pepper taste was overwhelming, but the panini was well pressed and tasty.

The reviewer also felt that the farm-to-table initiative was noteworthy.

The strawberry coffeecake was an absolute delight. It was a large enough piece to sate a sweet tooth but small enough that one wouldn't feel bloated afterward.

Worth noting is the small dining room also meant that voices traveled easily. Chatter from different diners, when the shop is busy, could be a concern. Our reviewers visited the establishment shortly before noon, however, and had no problems conversing with each other.

The menu items and the establishment's names made our reviewers chuckle, with Best Ever, Number 1 and Peter Rabbit options for panini and sandwiches.

For Cold Spring residents or anyone who passes by the area frequently, it's definitely a place they should stop by to grab a bite — "before it's gone." Even people who don't travel to Cold Spring often might want to consider having breakfast or lunch there on a nice summer day.